Have paint brush...will travel.

I did this little vignette for a poster advertising the Minnesota SCBWI Zoo day adventure back in 2010.  Next weekend is our latest outing.  Here's the scoop.

Join us on Saturday, July 28 for the MN SCBWI Mixer at the Como Zoo!

Yowl, Howl, Prowl, Pant - Come to the zoo, get a new slant!

Bring your sketch book or notebook. We will be drawing zoo-animals and
writing zoo-poetry. Bring a lunch or stop by the Zoo-cafe. We hear the
gorilla makes a mean cup o'joe. The Como Zoo is open 10:00 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Stay a few hours or all day!

We will meet at 10 a.m. at the Como Zoo Visitor Center entrance for
creativity and camaraderie. We will regroup for lunch at the Zoo-cafe at
12:30 p.m.

And it is my latest entry over at www.illustrationfriday.com  I have a boat load of Carry themed illustrations on file.   But this one was a bogo.  Not only zoo but carry too! The beaver is not only wielding the paintbrush, but carrying it.  And he is carrying his tail as a palette.   He just looks so excited about his graffiti. The moose not so much.

Zoo Boo

"You painted what on me? Surely you jest," barked the Moose. The Beaver boldly raised his arm and proclaimed, "I dared and I did. And don't call me Shirley!"

Gesture is the theme of the day over at http://www.illustrationfriday.com/ I've actually been thinking of this illustration lately. Because last weekend was supposed to be our annual MNSCBWI Field trip to the Zoo. I illustrated this piece for the promotional flyer last year. But between the State
Government shut down and our beloved illustrator coordinator moving away, http://christinarodriguez.com/blog/ Zoo Day was a bust. Nadda. Maybe it is being scheduled as we speak. Zoo Boo Hoo.

This is where the wild things are.

I illustrated the painted moose art for the Minnesota SCBWI's Summer field trip to the Zoo. To see the flyer visit http://www.minnesotascbwi.org/ I like to think that after the beaver finishes painting the patient moose, the moose decides to kick the beaver sharply in the be-hind. The paint and the beaver fly into the shallow water. Unfortunately the poor beaver is forced to swim away through a swirl of paint clutching the paintbrush tightly between his two front teeth. The End. In honor of Zoo Day (which I missed, darn it all) I decided to create a HUGE post of animal photos. Have fun at my Zoo!

Corn chips.

This fawn was photographed in Hatfield, WI.

A Howler monkey at Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica.

Standing tough.

Baby

My pet bat...not.

Owl butterfly.

I'm talk'in turkey at Fort Snelling.

Akua

White faced monkey.

Monster Hummer.

It's a Kinkajou raiding the hummingbird feeder. At Monteverde.

This behind belongs to a Coati.

We like to think that we saved this frog from the volcanically heated pool. He didn't say thank you.

This sloth dared to cross a busy highway. Luckily a local gentleman stopped his vehicle and escorted him safely across. Near Fortuna, Costa Rica.

A Red-lored Parrot perhaps?

This is the extremely rare White-throated Magpie-Jay. Ha!

This is a beloved house cat. Hana! To see more beloved house cats visit http://www.gattinamycats.blogspot.com/